Increasing irrigation water productivity in Mozambique, Tanzania and Zimbabwe through on-farm monitoring, adaptive management and agricultural innovation platforms

Dr Jamie Pittock & Dr Makarius Mdemu at commerical rice irrigation scheme Great Ruaha, Tanzania. Photo credit J Pittock, ANU

Project staff inspecting irrigation canal headworks in the Great Ruaha region of Tanzania. Photo credit J Pittock, ANU

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Project leader:

Australian National University, Dr Jamie Pittock, Director of International Programs and UNESCO Chair in Water Economics and Transboundary Water Governance

ACIAR project manager:

Dr Evan Christen

Start Date:

15 June 2013

End Date:

14 June 2017

Partners:

• Australian National University

• AKMA – Tanzania

• Ardhi University - Tanzania

• Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) - Australia

• ECOLI

Tanzania • Food

Agriculture and Natural Resources Policy Analysis Network (FANRPAN)

• International Crops Research Institute for the Semi Arid Tropics (ICRISAT)

• National Institute of Irrigation - Mozambique

• University of Pretoria - South Africa

• University of South Australia

AIFSC Investment:

$3.2 million

Co-contribution:

$1.8 million

Tabs

Overview

This project will research how to increase productivity of small-scale irrigated agriculture in south eastern Africa.

This project will look at options for more-sustainable management of common pool resources. It will identify barriers to improved productivity and profitability along the value chain of irrigation production; improve irrigation water productivity; develop an adaptive management approach to both on-farm water management and water resource management; and increase the capacity of farmers, organisations and governments to adaptively manage water.

Irrigation in Sub-Saharan Africa has had major difficulties providing an adequate return on investment, due to weak water governance institutions, weak market integration, and significant degradation and abandonment of irrigated land. Despite this, irrigation expansion is taking place within government schemes and through individual smallholder farmers.

This project aims to increase the productivity of irrigation in Mozambique, Tanzania and Zimbabwe to enhance food security. It will use participatory on-farm monitoring of water applied; soil water, nitrate and salt; water tables and groundwater depth, to identify options for improving the water use.

‘Innovation Platforms’ will be established, comprising farmers, political representatives and players across the market value chain, to identify institutional and market constraints and to stimulate opportunities for change.

Outputs will include documented options for improving water productivity and sustainability, methodology related to innovation platforms and adaptive learning, and policy options for improved water governance across various scales.

This project builds on a scoping study that reviewed how irrigation could contribute to food security in Sub-Saharan African countries and provided recommendations for investment.

Project summary pdf (File Size: 354 KB)

Location

Mozambique, Tanzania and Zimbabwe

Results

Click here for up to date progress reports

The Inception Workshop was held in Maputo Mozambique 19-21 August 2013. The project team met and discussed methodologies and developed work plans for the coming year. The 3 days were effectively used to create an overall project team feeling and to introduce key concepts around action research, innovation platforms and water use productivity. Read more about the inception workshop and view photos from the workshop on our facebook page.

The Team

Project Leader:

Australian National University, Dr Jamie Pittock, Director of International Programs and UNESCO Chair in Water Economics and Transboundary Water Governance

Australian Collaborating organisation:

Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), Dr. Gordon Rogers, CEO/Adjunct Professor of Horticulture (Research Agronomist)

University of South Australia, Prof Henning Bjornlund, Adjunct Professor

Partner country agencies:

Food, Agriculture and Natural Resources Policy Analysis Network (FANRPAN), Dr Amy Sullivan, CPWF Limpopo Basin DC Project Coordinator

University of Pretoria (South Africa), Prof J.G. Annandale, Head, Department of Plant Production & Soil Science

National Institute of Irrigation (Mozambique), Mr Paiva Munguambe, General Director

Ardhi University (Tanzania), Dr Makarius V Mdemu, Lecturer, Department of Regional Development Planning

International Crops Research Institute for the Semi Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) (Zimbabwe), Prof Justice Nyamangara, Scientist – Agronomy